KOHAT: Seven tribeswomen and children belonging to Akhorwal tribe of Darra Adamkhel tribal subdivision were injured when rockets were launched at their houses by Akakhel and Maroofkhel tribes of the neighbouring Khyber district over a decades-old land dispute on Wednesday.

Azam Khan, a local official, said that the firing prompted Darra assistant commissioner Ashrafuddin to call the Khyber administration for stopping the hostilities.

Later, he also called a meeting of the elders from both the sides at the Eagle Fort to effect cease fire. The official said that five missiles were fired from the Khyber side, which landed and exploded in a populated area.

The official said that the missiles had been used for the first time as earlier only automatic weapons were used. He added that the Khyber tribes had been demanding fresh demarcation of the disputed land.

The official said that the Khyber tribes laid claim over the Akhorwal land, which according to the revenue record, was the property of Darra Adamkhel tribe for centuries.

Azam Khan said that Khyber tribes used a short dirt road in Darra for going to Peshawar to avoid taking long detour through Bara.

Meanwhile, the Darra women, who have been married to other districts, have demanded of the local administration to declare illegal a local custom that denies them share in profit from coal mining.

They were speaking at an open court called by additional assistant commissioner, finance and planning, Reena Soharwardi.

The women demanded equal ownership rights over the coal mines, which have been denied to them under the outdated traditions. They condemned the ruling that any women married outside Darra was not entitled to profit from coal mines.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2023